Two-day festival at Panagia Soumela of the New World

At a time when Hellenism everywhere has placed its hopes in the Most Holy Theotokos, the Pontians and other Greeks will ascend for another year to worship the miraculous icon of Panagia Soumela.

And this year, as in the past, a rich entertainment program will accompany the religious festival, giving a different dimension to the pilgrimage. On the afternoon of Saturday, August 16, vespers will be celebrated and the icon of Panagia Soumela will be paraded around the church.

On Sunday morning, the Orthros and the Divine Liturgy will be celebrated with a general Memorial and Artoklasia, and the procession of the icon will follow again. The religious ceremonies this year will be officiated by the Most Reverend Archimandrite Fr. Eugenios Tsaramanidis,
priestly head of the Holy Church of Saint Demetrius in Union, New Jersey.

The Consul General of Greece in New York, Ms. Ifigenia Kanara, also expressed her intention to attend the Divine Liturgy.

A rich artistic program will then be presented with the participation of many artists and with Pontic music and dance, as well as an orchestra, the Mike Stoupakis orchestra with Fotini Tsilioni on vocals.

The part of the feast with Pontic music will be performed this year by Christos Tiktapanidis, on the lyre, Dimitris Stefanidis, on the lyre and singing, and Sokratis Togridis, on the daouli.

It is recalled that those who wish can also visit the facilities on Friday, the day of the feast of the Great Feast, but they will not be able to operate on that day.

A bus for the transfer of those who do not have their own means of transportation will depart from Astoria, on Sunday morning. The bus will depart at 8 in the morning, right in front of the building of the Pontian Association "Komninoi", on 23rd Avenue and 32nd Street. The bus is free.

The Holy Foundation invites all Greeks from the Diaspora to participate in the pilgrimage and experience the events dedicated to the Protectress of Pontus.
The address of the Monastery of “Panagia Soumela” is: 253 Marshall Hill Road, West Milford, New Jersey.

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